Manual of Gardening (Second Edition) by L. H. Bailey

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_Hollyhock rust._--Fig. 212. Eradicate the wild mallow _(Malva
rotundifolia)._ Remove all hollyhock leaves as soon as they show signs
of rust. Spray several times with bordeaux mixture, taking care to cover
both sides of leaves.

_Lettuce drop or rot._--This is a fungous disease often destructive in
greenhouses, discovered by the sudden wilting of the plants. It is
completely controlled by steam sterilization of the soil to the depth of
two inches or more. If it is not feasible to sterilize the soil, use
fresh soil for every crop of lettuce.

_Muskmelon diseases._--"Blight'" is a very troublesome disease. The
leaves show angular dead-brown spots, then dry up and die; the fruit
often fails to ripen and lacks flavor. It is caused by the same fungus
as is the downy mildew of cucumbers. While bordeaux has proved effective
in controlling the downy mildew on cucumbers, it seems to be of little
value in lessening the same disease on melons.

"Wilt" is the same as the wilt of cucumbers; same treatment is given.

_Peach diseases._--Brown-rot is difficult to control. Plant resistant
varieties. Prune the trees so as to let in sunlight and air. Thin the
fruit well. As often as possible pick and destroy all rotten fruits. In
the fall destroy all remaining fruits. Spray with bordeaux mixture
before the buds break, or self-boiled lime-sulfur.

Leaf-curl is a disease in which the leaves become swollen and distorted
in spring and drop during June and July (Fig. 213). Elberta is an
especially susceptible variety. Easily and completely controlled by
spraying the trees once, before the buds swell, with bordeaux, 5-5-50,
or with the lime-sulfur mixtures used for San Jose scale.

Black-spot or scab often proves troublesome in wet seasons and
particularly in damp or sheltered situations. While this disease attacks
the twigs and leaves, it is most conspicuous and injurious on the fruit,
where it appears as dark spots or blotches. In severe attacks the fruit
cracks. In the treatment of this disease it is of prime importance _to
secure a free circulation of air_ about the fruit. Accomplish this by
avoiding low sites, by pruning, and by removal of windbreaks. Spray as
for leaf-curl and follow with two applications of potassium sulfide, 1
oz. to 3 gal., the first being made soon after the fruit is set and the
second when the fruit is half grown.

Yellows is a so-called "physiological disease." Cause unknown.
Contagious, and serious in some localities. Known by the premature
ripening of the fruit, by red streaks and spots in the flesh, and by the
peculiar clusters of sickly, yellowish shoots that appear on the limbs
here and there (Fig. 215). Dig out and burn diseased trees as soon as
discovered.

_Pear diseases._--Fire-blight kills the twigs and branches, on which the
leaves suddenly blacken and die but do not fall. It also produces
cankers on the trunk and large limbs. Prune out blighted branches as
soon as discovered, cutting 6 to 8 in. below the lowest evidences of the
disease. Clean out limb and body cankers. Disinfect all large wounds
with corrosive sublimate solution, 1 to 1000, and cover with coat of
paint. Avoid forcing a rapid, succulent growth. Plant the varieties
least affected.

Pear scab is very similar to apple scab. It is very destructive to some
varieties, as, for example, Flemish Beauty and Seckel. Spray three times
with bordeaux, as for apple scab.

_Plum and cherry diseases._--Black-knot is a fungus, the spores of which
are carried from tree to tree by the wind and thus spread the infection.
Cut out and burn all knots as soon as discovered. See that the knots are
removed from all plum and cherry trees in the neighborhood.

Leaf-spot is a disease in which the leaves become covered with reddish
or brown spots and fall prematurely (Fig. 211); badly affected trees
winterkill. Often, the dead spots drop out, leaving clear-cut holes.
Spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50. For cherries, make four applications:
first, just before blossoms open; second, when fruit is free from calyx;
third, two weeks later; fourth, two weeks after third. In plums it may
be controlled by two or three applications of bordeaux, 5-5-50. Make the
first one about ten days after the blossoms fall and the others at
intervals of about three weeks. This applies to European varieties.
Japan plums should not be sprayed with bordeaux.

_Potato diseases._--There are different kinds of potato blight and rot.
The most important are early blight and late blight--both fungous
diseases. Early blight affects only the foliage. Late blight kills the
foliage and often rots the tubers. Two serious troubles often mistaken
for blight are: (1) Tip burn, the browning of the tips and margins of
the leaves due to dry weather; and (2) flea-beetle injury, in which the
leaves show numerous small holes and then dry up. The loss from blight
and flea-beetles is enormous--often, one-fourth to one-half the crop.
For blight-rot and flea-beetles spray with bordeaux, 5-5-50. Begin when
the plants are 6 to 8 in. high and repeat every 10 to 14 days during the
season, making 5 to 7 applications in all. Use 40 to 100 gal. per acre
at each application. Under conditions exceptionally favorable to blight
it will pay to spray as often as once a week.

Scab is caused by a fungus that attacks the surface of the tubers. It is
carried over on diseased tubers and in the soil. In general, when land
becomes badly infested with scab, it is best to plant it with other
crops for several years. (See page 190.)

_Raspberry diseases._--Anthracnose is very destructive to black
raspberries, but not often injurious to the red varieties. It is
detected by the circular or elliptical gray scab-like spots on the
canes. Avoid taking young plants from diseased plantations. Remove all
old canes and badly diseased new ones as soon as the fruit is gathered.
Although spraying with bordeaux, 5-5-50, will control the malady, the
treatment may not be profitable. If spraying seems advisable, make the
first application when the new canes are 6 to 8 in. high and follow with
two more at intervals of 10 to 14 days.

Cane-blight or wilt is a destructive disease affecting both red and
black varieties. Fruiting canes suddenly wilt and die. It is caused by a
fungus which attacks the cane at some point and kills the bark and wood,
thereby causing the parts above to die. No successful treatment is
known. In making new settings, use only plants from healthy plantations.
Remove the fruiting canes as soon as the fruit is gathered.

Red-rust is often serious on black varieties, but does not affect red
ones. It is the same as red rust of blackberry. Dig up and destroy
affected plants.

_Rose diseases._--Black leaf-spot is one of the commonest diseases of
the rose. It causes the leaves to fall prematurely. Spray with bordeaux,
5-5-50, beginning as soon as the first spots appear on the leaves. Two
or three applications at intervals of ten days will very largely control
the disease. Ammoniacal copper carbonate may be used on roses grown
under glass. Apply once a week until disease is under control.

For mildew on greenhouse roses, keep the steam pipes painted with a
paste made of equal parts lime and sulfur mixed up with water. The
mildew is a surface-feeding fungus and is killed by the fumes of the
sulfur. Outdoor roses that become infested with the mildew may be dusted
with sulfur, or sprayed with a solution of potassium sulfide, 1 oz. to 3
gal. water. Spray or dust with the sulfur two or three times at
intervals of a week or ten days.

_Strawberry leaf-spot._--The most common and serious fungous disease of
the strawberry; also called rust and leaf-blight. The leaves show spots
which at first are of a deep purple color, but later enlarge and the
center becomes gray or nearly white. The fungus passes the winter in the
old diseased leaves that fall to the ground. In setting new plantations,
remove all diseased leaves from the plants before they are taken to the
field. Soon after growth begins, spray the newly set plants with
bordeaux, 5-5-50. Make three or four additional sprayings during the
season. The following spring, spray just before blossoming and again 10
to 14 days later. If the bed is to be fruited a second time, mow the
plants and burn over the beds as soon as the fruit is gathered. Plant
resistant varieties.

_Tomato leaf-spot._--The distinguishing character of this disease is
that it begins on the lower leaves and works towards the top, killing
the foliage as it goes. It is controlled with difficulty because it is
carried over winter in the diseased leaves and tops that fall to the
ground. When setting out plants, pinch off all the lower leaves that
touch the ground; also any leaves that show suspicious-looking
dead-spots. The trouble often starts in the seed-bed. Spray plants very
thoroughly with bordeaux, 5-5-50, beginning as soon as the plants are
set out. Stake and tie up for greater convenience in spraying. Spray
under side of the leaves. Spray every week or ten days.

CHAPTER VII

THE GROWING OF THE ORNAMENTAL PLANTS--THE CLASSES OF PLANTS, AND
LISTS

In choosing the kinds of plants for the main grounds the gardener should
carefully distinguish two categories,--those plants to compose the
structural masses and design of the place, and those that are to be used
for mere ornament. The chief merits to be sought in the former are good
foliage, pleasing form and habit, shades of green, and color of winter
twigs. The merits of the latter lie chiefly in flowers or
colored foliage.

Each of these categories should be again divided. Of plants for the main
design, there might be discussion of trees for a windbreak, of trees for
shade; of shrubs for screens or heavy plantings, for the lighter side
plantings, and for incidental masses about the buildings or on the lawn;
and perhaps also of vines for porches and arbors, of evergreens, of
hedges, and of the heavier herbaceous masses.

Plants used for mere embellishment or ornamentation may be ranged again
into categories for permanent herbaceous borders, for display beds,
ribbon edgings, annuals for temporary effects, foliage beds, plants for
adding color and emphasis to the shrubbery masses, plants desired to be
grown as single specimens or as curiosities, and plants for porch-boxes
and window-gardens.

Having now briefly suggested the uses of the plants, we shall proceed to
discuss them in reference to the making of home grounds. This chapter
contains a brief consideration of:

_Planting for immediate effect,

The use of "foliage" trees and shrubs,

Windbreaks and screens,

The making of hedges,

The borders,

The flower-beds,

Aquatic and bog plants,

Rockeries and alpine plants;_

and then it runs into nine sub-chapters, as follows:--

1. Plants for carpet-beds, p. 234;

2. The annual plants, p. 241;

3. Hardy herbaceous perennials, p. 260;

4. Bulbs and tubers, p. 281;

5. The shrubbery, p. 290;

6. Climbing plants, p. 307;

7. Trees for lawns and streets, p. 319;

8. Coniferous evergreen trees and shrubs, p. 331;

9. Window-gardens, p. 336.

And then, in Chapter VIII, the particular cultures of plants needing
special care are briefly discussed.

_Planting for immediate effect._

It is always legitimate, and, in fact, desirable, to plant for immediate
effect. One may plant very thickly of rapid-growing trees and shrubs for
this purpose. It is a fact, however, that very rapid-growing trees
usually lack strong or artistic character. Other and better trees should
be planted with them and the featureless kinds be gradually removed.
(Page 41.)

The effect of a new place may be greatly heightened by a dexterous use
of annuals and other herbaceous stuff in the shrub plantations. Until
the shrubbery covers the ground, temporary plants may be grown among
them. Subtropical beds may give a very desirable temporary finish to
places that are pretentious enough to make them seem in keeping.

Very rough, hard, sterile, and stony banks may sometimes be covered with
coltsfoot (_Tussilago Farfara_), sacaline, _Rubus cratoegifotius,_
comfrey, and various wild growths that persist in similar places in the
neighborhood.

However much the planter may plan for immediate effects, the beauty of
trees and shrubs comes with maturity and age, and this beauty is often
delayed, or even obliterated, by shearing and excessive heading-back. At
first, bushes are stiff and erect, but when they attain their full
character, they usually droop or roll over to meet the sward. Some
bushes make mounds of green much sooner than others that may even be
closely related. Thus the common yellow-bell (_Forsythia virdissima_)
remains stiff and hard for some years, whereas _F. suspensa_ makes a
rolling heap of green in two or three years. Quick informal effects can
also be secured by the use of Hall's Japanese honeysuckle (_Lonicera
Halliana_ of nurserymen), an evergreen in the South, and holding its
leaves until midwinter or later in the North. It may be used for
covering a rock, a pile of rubbish, a stump (Fig. 236), to fill a corner
against a foundation, or it may be trained on a porch or arbor. There is
a form with yellow-veined leaves. _Rosa Wichuraiana_ and some of the
dewberries are useful for covering rough places.

Many vines that are commonly used for porches and arbors may be employed
also for the borders of shrub-plantations and for covering rough banks
and rocks, quickly giving a finish to the cruder parts of the place.
Such vines, among others, are various kinds of clematis, Virginia
creeper, actinidia, akebia, trumpet creeper, periploca, bitter-sweet
(_Solanum Dulcamara_), wax-work (_Celastrus scandens_).

Of course, very good immediate effects may be secured by very close
planting (page 222), but the homesteader must not neglect to thin out
these plantations when the time comes.

[Illustration: Fig 236. Stump covered with Japanese honeysuckle.]

_The use of "foliage" trees and shrubs._

There is always a temptation to use too freely of the trees and shrubs
that are characterized by abnormal or striking foliage. The subject is
discussed in its artistic bearings on pages 40 and 41.

As a rule, the yellow-leaved, spotted-leaved, variegated, and other
abnormal "foliage" plants are less hardy and less reliable than the
green-leaved or "natural" forms. They usually require more care, if they
are kept in vigorous and seemly condition. Some marked exceptions to
this are noted in the lists of trees and shrubs.

There are some plants of striking foliage, however, that are perfectly
reliable, but they are usually not of the "horticultural variety" class,
their characteristics being normal to the species. Some of the silver or
white-leaved poplars, for example, produce the most striking contrasts
of foliage, particularly if set near darker trees, and for this reason
they are much desired by many planters. Bolle's poplar (_Populus
Bolleana_ of the nurseries) is one of the best of these trees. Its habit
is something like that of the Lombardy. The upper surface of the deeply
lobed leaves is dark dull green, while the under surface is almost snowy
white. Such emphatic trees as this should generally be partially
obscured by planting them amongst other trees, so that they appear to
mix with the other foliage; or else they should be seen at some
distance. Other varieties of the common white poplar or abele are
occasionally useful, although most of them sprout badly and may become a
nuisance. But the planting of these immodest trees is so likely to be
overdone that one scarcely dare recommend them, although, when
skillfully used, they may be made to produce most excellent effects. If
any reader has a particular fondness for trees of this class (or any
others with woolly-white foliage) and if he has only an ordinary city
lot or farm-yard to ornament, let him reduce his desires to a single
tree, and then if that tree is planted in the interior of a group of
other trees, no harm can result.

_Windbreaks and screens._

A shelter-belt for the home grounds is often placed at the extreme edge
of the home yard, toward the heaviest or prevailing wind. It may be a
dense plantation of evergreens. If so, the Norway spruce is one of the
best for general purposes in the northeastern states. For a lower belt
the arbor vitae is excellent. Some of the pines, as the Scotch or
Austrian, and the native white pine, are also to be advised,
particularly if the belt is at some distance from the residence. As a
rule, the coarser the tree the farther it should be placed from
the house.

The common deciduous trees of the region (as elm, maple, box-elder) may
be planted in a row or rows for windbreaks. Good temporary shelter belts
are secured by poplars and large willows. On the prairies and far north
the laurel willow _(Salix laurifolia_ of the trade) is excellent. Where
snow blows very badly, two lines of breaks may be planted three to six
rods apart, so that the inclosed lane may catch the drift; this method
is employed in prairie regions.

Persons may desire to use the break as a screen to hide undesirable
objects. If these objects are of a permanent character, as a barn or an
unkempt property, evergreen trees should be used. For temporary screens,
any of the very large-growing herbaceous plants may be employed. Very
excellent subjects are sunflowers, the large-growing nicotianas, castor
beans, large varieties of Indian corn, and plants of like growth.
Excellent screens are sometimes made with vines on a trellis.

Very efficient summer screens may be made with ailanthus, paulownia,
basswood, sumac, and other plants that tend to throw up very vigorous
shoots from the base. After these plants have been set a year or two,
they are cut back nearly to the ground in winter or spring, and strong
shoots are thrown up with great luxuriance during the summer, giving a
dense screen and presenting a semi-tropical effect. For such purposes,
the roots should be planted only two or three feet apart. If, after a
time, the roots become so crowded that the shoots are weak, some of the
plants may be removed. Top-dressing the area every fall with manure will
tend to make the ground rich enough to afford a very heavy summer
growth. (See Fig. 50.)

_The making of hedges._

Hedges are much less used in this country than in Europe, and for
several reasons. Our climate is dry, and most hedges do not thrive so
well here as there; labor is high-priced, and the trimming is therefore
likely to be neglected; our farms are so large that much fencing is
required; timber and wire are cheaper than live hedges.

However, hedges are used with good effect about the home grounds. In
order to secure a good ornamental hedge, it is necessary to have a
thoroughly well-prepared deep soil, to set the plants close, and to
shear them at least twice every year. For evergreen hedges the most
serviceable plant in general is the arbor vitae. The plants may be set
at distances of 1 to 2-1/2 feet apart. For coarser hedges, the Norway
spruce is used; and for still coarser ones, the Scotch and Austrian
pines. In California the staple conifer hedge is made of Monterey
cypress. For choice evergreen hedges about the grounds, particularly
outside the northern states, some of the retinosporas are very useful.
One of the most satisfactory of all coniferous plants for hedges is the
common hemlock, which stands shearing well and makes a very soft and
pleasing mass. The plants may be set from 2 to 4 feet apart.

Other plants that hold their leaves and are good for hedges are the
common box and the privets. Box hedges are the best for very low borders
about walks and flower-beds. The dwarf variety can be kept down to a
height of 6 inches to a foot for any number of years. The
larger-growing varieties make excellent hedges 3, 4, and 5 feet high.
The ordinary privet or prim holds its leaves well into winter in the
North. The so-called Californian privet holds its leaves rather longer
and stands better along the seashore. The mahonia makes a low, loose
hedge or edging in locations where it will thrive. Pyracantha is also to
be recommended where hardy. In the southern states, nothing is better
than _Citrus trifoliata._ This is hardy even farther north than
Washington in very favored localities. In the South, _Prunus
Caroliniana_ is also used for hedges. Saltbush hedges are frequent in
California.

For hedges of deciduous plants, the most common species are the
buckthorn, Japan quince, the European hawthorn and other thorns,
tamarix, osage orange, honey locust, and various kinds of roses. Osage
orange has been the most used for farm hedges. For home grounds,
_Berberis Thunbergii_ makes an excellent free hedge; also _Spiraea
Thunbergii_ and other spireas. The common _Rosa rugosa_ makes an
attractive free hedge.

Hedges should be trimmed the year after they are set, although they
should not be sheared very closely until they reach the desired or
permanent height. Thereafter they should be cut into the desired form in
spring or fall, or both. If the plants are allowed to grow for a year or
two without trimming, they lose their lower leaves and become open and
straggly. Osage orange and some other plants are plashed; that is, the
plants are set at an angle rather than perpendicularly, and they are
wired together obliquely in such a way that they make an impenetrable
barrier just above the surface of the ground.

For closely clipped or sheared hedges, the best plants are arbor vitae,
retinospora, hemlock, Norway spruce, privet, buckthorn, box, osage
orange, pyracantha, _Citrus trifoliata._ The pyracantha _(Pyracantha
coccinea_) is an evergreen shrub allied to crataegus, of which it is
sometimes considered to be a species. It is also sometimes referred to
cotoneaster. Although hardy in protected places in the North, it is
essentially a bush of the middle and southern latitudes, and of
California. It has persistent foliage and red berries. Var. _Lalandi_
has orange-red berries.

_The borders._

The word "border" is used to designate the heavy or continuous planting
about the boundaries of a place, or along the walks and drives, or
against the buildings, in distinction from planting on the lawn or in
the interior spaces. A border receives different designations, depending
on the kinds of plants that are grown therein: it may be a shrub-border,
a flower-border, a hardy border for native and other plants, a
vine-border, and the like.

There are three rules for the choosing of plants for a hardy border:
choose (1) those that you like best, (2) those that are adapted to the
climate and soil, (3) those that are in place or in keeping with that
part of the grounds.

The earth for the border should be fertile. The whole ground should be
plowed or spaded and the plants set irregularly in the space; or the
back row may be set in a line. If the border is composed of shrubs, and
is large, a horse cultivator may be run in and out between the plants
for the first two or three years, since the shrubs will be set 2 to 4
feet apart. Ordinarily, however, the tilling is done with hand tools.
After the plants are once established and the border is filled, it is
best to dig up as little as possible, for the digging disturbs the roots
and breaks the crowns. It is usually best to pull out the weeds and give
the border a top-dressing each fall of well-rotted manure. If the ground
is not very rich, an application of ashes or some commercial fertilizer
may be given from time to time.

The border should be planted so thick as to allow the plants to run
together, thereby giving one continuous effect. Most shrubs should be
set 3 feet apart. Things as large as lilacs may go 4 feet and sometimes
even more. Common herbaceous perennials, as bleeding heart, delphiniums,
hollyhocks, and the like, should go from 12 to 18 inches. On the front
edge of the border is a very excellent place for annual and tender
flowering plants. Here, for example, one may make a fringe of asters,
geraniums, coleus, or anything else he may choose. (Chap. II.)

Into the heavy borders about the boundaries of the place the autumn
leaves will drift and afford an excellent mulch. If these borders are
planted with shrubs, the leaves may be left there to decay, and not be
raked off in the spring.

The general outline of the border facing the lawn should be more or less
wavy or irregular, particularly if it is on the boundary of the place.
Alongside a walk or drive the margins may follow the general directions
of the walk or drive.

In making borders of perennial flowers the most satisfactory results are
secured if a large clump of each kind or variety is grown. The
herbaceous border is one of the most flexible parts of grounds, since it
has no regular or formal design. Allow ample space for each perennial
root,--often as much as three or four square feet,--and then if the
space is not filled the first year or two, scatter over the area seeds
of poppies, sweet peas, asters, gilias, alyssum, or other annuals.
Figures 237-239, from Long ("Popular Gardening," i., 17, 18), suggest
methods of making such borders. They are on a scale of ten feet to the
inch. The entire surface is tilled, and the irregular diagrams designate
the sizes of the clumps. The diagrams containing no names are to be
filled with bulbs, annuals, and tender plants, if desired.

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